Misery Loves Company
by Nellie Potter
Summary: Inspired by Emilie Autumn's "Misery Loves Company". Cora has other intentions when she comes back to the Enchanted Forest with Hook from Wonderland. She is the one to enact the Dark Curse, and upon doing so, discovers the secret Regina's been keeping.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: So this is a total rewrite of the Stars Series. Sorry to those of you who liked it, but my inspiration just ran out and I instead came up with this little idea which I think will go much better.**

Dislcaimer: I don't own Once Upon a Time. No copyright infringment intended or whatever the hell it is.

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_"Misery loves company_

_And company loves more_

_More loves everybody else_

_But hell was others"_

_"Misery Loves Company" by Emilie Autumn_

""'''"""""""""'"""""""""

Regina almost couldn't do it. She almost couldn't push her mother through the mirror. Watching Cora cling on tightly to the edges of the mirror made Regina tear up a little. Her mother, surprisingly, looked scared. And who could really blame her? She was being shoved through a mirror.

And then Regina remembered having the same look constantly throughout her life. That look of fear and not knowing what was to become of her next. And that was all because of none other than her mother.

Payback time.

Still, she almost wasn't able to do it. This was her mother, after all. The same woman who made sure she was clothed and fed. The same woman who made sure she had the best of everything. But Regina didn't want everything. She wanted Daniel. And Daniel was the one thing Cora couldn't give her.

Seeing Rumpelstiltskin in the mirror also contributed to motivating her. Not just because he reminded her that all it would take was a little push, but also because he glanced down knowingly at her abdomen. It was then that Regina knew she had to do this.

So with one final cry and shove, Regina used her newfound magic and forced Cora through the mirror. And in an instant, Cora was gone.

Regina kept her eyes on the mirror, watching to see if Cora would come back and punish her for being an insolent girl. It was like her mother had said many times before: she didn't like insolence. The mirror remained undisturbed. It was just a simple mirror again, a mirror that was undoubtedly sent to her by the Dark One himself. A mirror, a gift that wasn't as personal, Cora had said. But easily one of the greatest gifts Regina could ever receive. No, correction: the second greatest Regina could ever receive.

When there was nothing but silence for a few moments, Regina let herself relax. Her chest was heaving slightly from her sudden adrenaline rush. She had done it. She had actually done it. Cora was gone, and she would no longer have to deal with her mother's torment!

Weakly, Regina smiled and placed a gentle hand over her abdomen. "I'm free," she breathed before looking down at the hand resting on her stomach. "We're free. We can be happy."

She didn't feel a kick. Not yet, it was too soon, but Regina knew very well that the day would come when she would feel her baby, hold her baby; raise her baby. Daniel's baby.

Someday.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: So last chapter was more of a prologue. And I know a lot of you will have questions. But just like the tv shows, things will be revealed in bits and pieces and some things may be left up to interpretation. **

**The more reviews, the faster I'll update!**

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She opened her eyes slowly, staring up at an unfamiliar ceiling. Quickly, Cora sat up and looked around. She didn't recognize anything. A small smile began to grace her features, but she denied herself the triumph for a few more moments. She just had to make sure…

Cora stood up from the bed, choosing to ignore the strange satin pajamas she was wearing. The woman walked over to the window and finally, she let herself grin. Below her rested a quaint little town, her town; Storybrooke.

She had made sure to leave Hook in a section of the Enchanted Forest that had been protected from the Curse. She wouldn't break the deal they made; he would get his revenge in twenty-eight years.

It had been easy to manipulate Regina to cast the Dark Curse to her liking. For the mother, she had almost hesitated to rip her daughter's heart from her chest. But it had been necessary. Cora had no heart herself and therefore could not love. Cora never would have been able to cast the Curse on her own for it called for the heart of the thing she loved most, which was nothing.

Regina had done all of the dirty work. She was going to cast the Dark Curse anyway. All Cora had done was use Regina to influence the curse to her liking. It had been almost too easy. Of course, Regina had her heart back now. Cora always cleaned up her messes… for the most part.

So everything would work out perfectly. Cora would be ready to get rid of the savior as soon she broke the curse, Hook would be able to find Storyrbrooke then to have his revenge, and then Cora would just have to find away to recast the curse. And Regina would not remember anything from the Enchanted Forest.

There was just one little detail that Cora never knew about.

"''''''''"""""""'''"""""'

Regina intended to sleep in. It was the perfect day to do that. She didn't have to go to work, her current boyfriend/lover was lying beside her, and the house was silent. Until a bloodcurdling scream tore through the house and shredded the silence.

Immediately, Regina and Graham bolted upright, looking towards the bedroom door that was opened just a crack. Without wasting time, they both threw off the duvet and rushed to the bathroom where the scream had come from.

There stood a teenager around fifteen years of age, staring at a spider on the bathroom mirror. The girl glanced over for a moment to Regina and Graham before returning her terrified gaze back to the spider. "Don't just stand there; kill it!"

Biting down on his tongue to prevent himself from laughing, Graham grabbed a tissue from the box on the bathroom counter and then used it to crush the spider. "We thought you were being murdered," he said with a chuckle as he threw away the tissue.

"I almost was," the teenager replied defensively. "I swear that thing was eyeing me like I was his next meal!" She didn't hate spiders. She absolutely loathed them.

"Mickey, I have my doubts that spider intended to eat you," Regina said matter-of-factly as she pulled her daughter to her, hugging her and suppressing her amused laughter. She kissed Mackenzie's forehead before releasing the teenager from her embrace. "Now go get some breakfast, alright? And thank Graham for saving your life," she teased.

"Right, thanks Graham!" Mackenzie Mills, more commonly known as Mickey, shouted over her shoulder as she headed downstairs to get some cereal.

It was Saturday and she knew what Saturdays meant. Saturdays meant going to Grandma's house. At least, that was the thought that the Dark Curse had implanted into her. There were many things that Regina had controlled about the curse, such as giving her daughter the idea that they visited Grandma on Saturdays. But because of Cora's manipulations, not all of Regina's plans would go accordingly.

As she poured the milk on her cereal, she heard footsteps coming down the stairs. "Bye Graham!" she called out, knowing that her mother's boyfriend was leaving. That was the routine: he'd stay over and in the morning he'd go to work before coming back later for dinner and then staying over. And so on the cycle would go.

Mackenzie supposed it was a good arrangement. She liked Graham and he seemed to make Regina happy. The thing about being fifteen though, she knew what they did when she was "sleeping"

(_reading until one in the morning)_

and it wasn't pleasant to think about. But she never complained, mainly because it would give away that she was actually awake very late at night.

Sometimes she found herself wondering when Graham would man up and just propose to her mother already. She wouldn't mind having him as a stepdad.

"Bye Mickey; same time as usual tonight!" Graham replied before shutting the front door.

Same time as usual as in dinnertime; Mackenzie could always count on him being there at dinner time. It was nice to be able to rely on a constant, like spending the day and some of the afternoon with Grandma on Saturdays.

"''""""""'"""""'""""

There came an unexpected knock at the door. Cora looked up from her newspaper, the Storybrooke Daily Mirror that she had purchased earlier. It was quite informative and Cora much appreciated that seeing as she didn't know much about this strange town that had come into existence only ten hours before.

Wondering who could be the one knocking, Cora set aside the Daily Mirror and went to the front door. She opened it and raised her eyebrows in surprise. "Regina," she breathed, not having expected to see her daughter. But this was what she had wanted: her daughter to come to her because she needed her.

Regina smiled brightly at Cora. It was rather strange to see, Regina happy to see her. But Cora would not dare complain. "Hello Mother," she greeted, stepping inside the house. As mayor, Cora did have a grand house and Regina always admired it. Of course, Regina had a lovely house herself. The Mills family was very well off.

When Regina had come inside, a smaller person that Cora did not recognize followed. "Hey Grandma," Mickey greeted with a smile. She was never really sure how Cora felt about her. All Mickey knew was that Grandma never really liked her dad, who had died in a tragic car accident.

Cora was simply stunned. She had never seen this child before in her life; this child who called her "grandma." She studied the girl, noting similar features between her and Regina such as nose and eye color. But her hair was a lighter shade of brown and she had paler skin. In some ways, she resembled the… no, there was no possible way for Regina to have had a child with that Stable Boy she had disposed of, Cora was sure of it.

Mackenzie noticed how Cora was looking at her. It was as if she didn't recognize her! "Uh Grandma, it's me: Mickey, remember?"

Blinking, Cora snapped out of her thoughts, deciding to go along with it. "Yes, of course dear. I just… can't believe how much you've grown," she lied through her teeth, smiling warmly and pulling Mackenzie into a tight hug, hoping this was convincing enough. Everything was so difficult without a heart.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Thank you to all of those who favorite, followed, and reviewed! I know this chapter isn't very long but I promise the next one will be a good length and will delve further into who Mackenzie was in the Enchanted Forest.**

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Cora had felt pure relief when the girl, Mickey or something, didn't stick around for too long. She had gone to the large backyard, leaving Cora and Regina alone. And it was time for Cora to test whether or not Regina remembered life in the Enchanted Forest. She had intended for her daughter to not remember anything, but not everything always went according to plan, as Cora had learned in the past.

After an hour or so of talking with her daughter, it seemed that Regina didn't remember anything of the past and only recalled her cursed life, just as Cora intended. And with this knowledge, she allowed herself a bright smile.

Regina took notice and tilted her head to the side slightly. "What has you so smiley, Mother?" she asked, setting down the coffee cup she had been drinking from. She had to admit, Cora had been acting a little odd. She seemed to have forgotten how to make coffee, or where anything was, and here she was smiling for seemingly no reason.

"Nothing, dear," Cora assured Regina. "I'm just… really glad to see you. And uh, Mickey of course," she added, recalling her granddaughter.

A little laugh escaped Regina. "I don't think you've ever been this happy to see us. You're acting like you haven't seen us for years."

But it had been years, for Cora anyway. And even though she didn't have a heart, to have her daughter sitting right beside her at the kitchen table was pleasing. It was as if Regina needed her again, which was exactly what Cora had wanted: for her daughter to be by her side again and needing her. "Well it has been a long time."

"Only a week."

Cora raised her eyebrows. Only a week? The woman opened her mouth to spit out a lie to save her, when the two were thankfully interrupted by Mackenzie walking into the kitchen. "It's really nice outside," the teen commented as she went to the refrigerator and poured herself a glass of milk and mixing in the chocolate syrup she found. She downed half of the chocolate milk and Cora watched her with raised eyebrows.

Mackenzie made eye contact with her grandmother and again sensed unfamiliarity. Did Grandma really not recognize her? That was how Mickey felt when their eyes met. And she could feel Cora studying her, trying to learn her face. It was… weird. Shouldn't Grandma know what she looked like? It was as if they were total strangers!

"'''""""''"""'''''"""''

"Is it just me, or was Grandma acting really weird?" Mickey asked Regina as the two were driving back to the house after their visit with Cora.

Regina, keeping her eyes on the road, smirked at her daughter's word; she couldn't exactly disagree though. "I'm sure Grandma is just under a lot of stress, being mayor and all. You have to keep in mind that it can be tough."

"Like being principal of the school?" interrupted Mickey with a little knowing smile. More often than not, her mom would come home complaining about the long day at work, having to put up with idiots who apparently aren't competent enough to understand the rules of school.

And of course, Mickey would always counteract Regina's complaints about being the principal of the elementary school with complaining about the tons and tons of work given to her as homework. And poor Graham was stuck in the middle of it. Yet he didn't seem to mind, which contributed to Mickey's conviction he would be a good stepfather.

She never brought the topic up to Regina though. It was a bit touchy because of how Regina felt about her first husband's death. Mickey didn't remember her father. She had been very young when he died. All she really knew was that his name had been Daniel and there was some resemblance between her and him.

Mackenzie wanted to ask about him. She wanted to know a lot about her dad. But whenever she came even close to the topic, Regina would get teary eyed and Mickey would feel guilty for bringing it up. She had gotten lucky in the past and Regina managed to show her some photos before the waterworks came.

A few photos, a few stories, and that was all. She wanted to know. She wanted to know so much.

"Yes, like being principal of the school."

"''''""""''''""""''"""""'"

Cora stared absently into space, holding a glass of wine in her hand. Mickey and Regina had left a few hours ago, which gave Cora time to herself to think. Things were so strange in this land and a part of her missed life in the Enchanted Forest and in Wonderland. But the Curse was cast and she would have to live with it and just learn how to operate these strange things that were known as technology.

Things seemed pretty peaceful in this town. But it still wasn't enough. She was reunited with her daughter. But it wasn't enough. She had to have Regina need her again. Sure, Regina was there, and seemed to visit every Saturday. None of this was enough, though.

She knew she had to wait though. There was a time for everything. Normally, Cora was not a patient monarch. But here, she was not queen. She was the mayor and patience was a virtue. The time would come for Regina to need her mother again. And only then would Cora would be completely satisfied with her new life here in Storybrooke.


	4. Chapter 4

**Decided to rewrite chapter four since the first version was pretty sucky. Enjoy!**

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**28 years later…**

Mackenzie stared at her computer. Every now and then she'd glance over her shoulder to make sure that her mother wasn't in the doorway. That was impossible though. Regina was out with Graham and Mackenzie would have heard her come home if she had. She was safe.

It wasn't as if Mickey was doing anything wrong exactly. She was just sure that she was doing something Regina wouldn't approve of. She had been told about this website by a friend at school and it seemed pretty cool. It was called and it was, according to her friend, a way to communicate with strangers with the same interests anonymously.

Well of course this intrigued Mickey. But she could just imagine getting grounded for even thinking about going on a website to talk with random people. So Mickey had waited until Graham and Regina were out on a date night.

She stared at the box where she was supposed to type in her interests. Funny, she could go on and on about what her interests were but when faced with the small blank box, she couldn't think of anything! Sighing heavily, she looked to her bookshelf. There had to be something she could put down. The first book Mickey saw was her collection of Grimm's Fairy Tales. Without a second thought, Mickey typed "fairy tales" in the box and hit the button to start a chat with someone.

It only took a few moments for a stranger to be found. Mickey tapped her keyboard in anticipation, waiting for the other person to start a conversation or something.

**Hey.**

That was it? Well, Mickey supposed she couldn't complain. At least it wasn't a personal question. So she responded.

**_Hey. So um… what fairy tales do you like?_**

Maybe this was a bad idea.

"'''"""""''"""""'''""

Henry stared at his monitor, glad that his mom wasn't around to see that he was on a website that let him talk to random strangers. He stared at the question he had been asked. What fairy tales did he like? That was tricky to answer. Henry liked basically all fairy tales.

He looked to the book of fairy tales that was next to him. These were the fairy tales he liked, but they weren't ordinary fairy tales. He couldn't just tell a stranger about that! Then again, wasn't that why he was on this site? To find someone who would believe him about the stories?

**I only really like the fairy tales in this book I have. They're different than the ones you know. **

**_Really? Like how?_**

**They tell a different version of the fairy tales you know. And these are real. **

In all honesty, Henry had thought the stranger would have disconnected at that moment. But no, whoever this was seemed curious because they stayed connected and kept talking to him.

''""""'''"""""""'""

So this stranger was delusional. Alright, Mickey could deal with that. In fact, she decided to go along with it, just for fun. She was actually having a bit of fun.

**_Oh really? How do you know that they're real?_**

**Because my mom's in the book. She's the savior and she's supposed to save the characters from the Evil Queen Regina.**

Mickey froze as she read the name of the Evil Queen. Regina? It had to be just a coincidence. The name Regina meant "queen" so of course whoever rewrote the fairy tales would have chosen that name. It was nothing, Mackenzie was sure of it. But obviously she wasn't entirely sure that it was just nothing. If she was, then she wouldn't have responded with:

**_My mom's name is Regina._**

What the stranger replied with was what nearly gave her a heart attack.

**Are you from Storybrooke?**

Mickey knew right then and there she should have disconnected. Not just disconnected, she should have thrown the computer right out the window! She couldn't though. Despite her mental protests, she continued to reply to the stranger.

**_How the hell did you know that?_**

**Because when the book was sent to me, that's what the return address was.**

She didn't know how to respond. This was all too freaky to be a coincidence. There was nowhere else in the world that was called Storybrooke; Mickey knew that for a fact. Regina, Storybrooke; she almost couldn't handle it.

Finally, after taking a few deep breaths, Mickey responded.

**_Here's my email. We need to keep talking about this. _**

So she gave him her email. Maybe it was stupid and maybe this was a hoax. But still, this seemed all too freaky for this to be just some creepy person on the internet. Mickey waited a few more moments after sending the message before she disconnected.

She checked her email and saw nothing. So the stranger hadn't decided to keep in touch so that she could further investigate this. Her shoulders sagged in disappointment. So it really had been some sort of trick; just another loser on the computer messing with other people for a bit of fun.

But how had the stranger known she was from Storybrooke?

"''''"""""'"""""""""

Queen Regina sobbed heavily, as she had been doing for the past few days. She had been inconsolable and would not talk to anyone.

Things had been going so well for her. True, her mother had killed Daniel right in front of her because Snow couldn't keep a secret and true, she was now that little monster's stepmother. But she had her baby.

Her darling little Maleen. Regina had to pass her off as the king's daughter, which had been no trouble at all. Everyone had believed that the girl was the product of her and Leopold. Maleen had been her only source of happiness during this time, her only reminder of Daniel besides the golden ring he had given her.

Maleen had only been a few months old. Regina had a few months of happiness before it was once more ripped from her.

No one knew how it happened. No one knew why it happened. No one had any explanation. In the middle of the night, someone managed to break into the castle. Someone managed to snatch the young princess.

In a way, Regina thought, this was karma getting back at her. She had pushed her mother through the mirror into an unknown world and now she lost the child she loved more than anything.

And this just fueled Regina's anger and hatred. If Snow White had never told Cora about the plan to elope with Daniel, he would still be alive and they'd be raising Maleen together! But he was dead and Maleen had been snatched from her cradle.

For the first time in days, the tears stopped flowing from Regina's chocolate brown eyes. She wiped the salty wetness from her cheeks and looked out the window of her bedroom. In her mind, this was all Snow's fault. She would have her revenge. In the end, she would have her daughter and her revenge.

''""""''""""""'""""

It was late at night, around 11:30, when Mackenzie heard the ping come from her computer. Having not been able to sleep, Mickey had just been lying in bed for about an hour, staring up at her ceiling. The ping had intrigued her though. It meant she had received an email.

Immediately, Mackenzie got out of bed, making sure to avoid any part of the floor that made any noise when walked on. She sat down at the computer and checked her email to see that a stranger had sent her something. She glanced to her door and didn't see any lights; meaning Graham and Regina were already in bed. Deeming it safe, Mickey opened up the email.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Sorry for the long wait! Been busy with school and everything. Hopeful chapter six won't take as long to upload. Please review! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Once Upon a Time. No copyright infringement intended. Do not sue! **

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Mackenzie sat at the counter in Granny's Diner, ignoring her coffee that she had ordered. She was rather nervous about this.

After reading the stranger's email a few days ago, and corresponding, Mickey had found out some very interesting things. The stranger's name was Henry and he would be coming to Storybrooke. What Mickey was really nervous about though was the fact that Henry might not actually be just a kid like he said he was. He could very well be an old creep.

It was a risk she was apparently willing to take, though.

The bell above the diner's door tingled in the background, and Mickey paid it no mind since people came in and out of there often. This time was different though. This time, it signaled a stranger to Storybrooke coming into the diner.

"Mackenzie Mills?" a voice said from behind the fifteen year old.

Mickey turned to see a young boy, no older than ten years old, with messy brown hair and dark brown eyes. "Henry?" The boy grinned and nodded. Mickey felt a wave of relief wash over her. So Henry wasn't a creep after all. He actually was a ten year old kid.

Without saying anything, Henry sat on the stool next to Mackenzie, putting his book of fairy tales he had tucked under his arm on the counter. Mickey looked over her shoulder, expecting to see the adult that accompanied Henry. It only made sense that there would be an adult, most like his mom, seeing as he had traveled all the way from Boston. But Mickey didn't see anyone. "Uh, Henry… did you travel alone?" she asked, looking back to the boy.

Henry nodded idly. In a way, he almost didn't have a choice but to travel alone. "My mom needs to come here to Storybrooke for Operation Cobra. I left a note telling her where I was so that she can come get me and then the operation can officially get started."

Ah yes, Operation Cobra. The codename had been Henry's idea. Honestly, Mickey was still convinced that there wasn't a curse, but the coincidences still freaked her out a little. "So that's the book then?"

Without needing to be asked to, Henry opened the book and pushed it over so it was front of Mickey. "It's mostly about Snow White," he explained, watching Mackenzie flip through it. "What really happened."

Mickey didn't read the entire story, she only skimmed. What her brain registered did surprise her. It depicted the Evil Queen as this horrible person who killed hundreds to exact her revenge on Snow White; nothing at all like the tale that Mickey knew.

"This book can't be right," she stated matter-of-factly. "Or what you say can't be right. My mom can't be the evil queen. She's too nice."

Henry quickly shushed her, looking around to make sure that no one was listening in to their conversation. This was top secret! That was the whole point of the codename that had nothing to do with what it was actually about.

Just then, the little bell above the door jingled. Both Henry and Mickey looked over to see none other than Madam Mayor herself.

Cora raised her eyebrows when she saw Mackenzie. What surprised her even more was the stranger sitting beside her granddaughter. As Cora walked over to them, Henry took the book and shoved it into his backpack.

"Hi Grandma," Mackenzie greeted with a smile. While she and her grandma weren't very close, she still loved her.

The mayor smiled warmly at her granddaughter. Over the years, she had learned to act like she loved Mackenzie very much, which was so very hard. "Hello dear." She kissed the top of Mickey's head before looking quizzically at Henry. "And who is this?"

Mickey and Henry exchanged quick glances before she improvised. "He's a friend who's visiting."

Clever girl, Cora thought. Mickey had made sure that she hadn't technically lied, and even though Cora knew that Mickey wasn't telling the whole truth, she decided to play along. "Oh a visiting friend, how nice." Cora looked to Henry, studying him for a few moments. "In that case, welcome to Storybrooke."

Granny looked over to Cora, silently asking her what she wanted. Taking the hint, Cora answered with, "Coffee to go, please." She looked back to Mickey. It took all of her willpower not to strangle the girl. It was so very hard! "Why don't you go show Henry around town, dear? I'm sure he'd appreciate it."

"Yeah, sure thing! C'mon Henry," said Mickey, jumping at the opportunity to leave so that she and Henry could continue speaking in private. She left a few dollars on the counter to pay for her coffee and led the way out of the diner, her new companion in tow.

Both of them failed to realize that they never told Cora Henry's name.

As Cora watched them go, she smirked to herself. The son of the Savior had come to Storybrooke. Perfect; just like she had planned. And it seemed he had received the book she had anonymously sent him. All that was left was for the Savior to come to Storybrooke and break the curse. Regina would be blamed. And once blamed and broken, Mother would be there to pick up the pieces of her shattered daughter.

Regina would finally see that she needed her mother. Hook would be able to come to Storybrooke and fulfill his revenge driven deed of killing his crocodile. Things would all work out. Cora's original intention was to find a way to recast the curse once Rumpelstiltskin, or Mr. Gold as he was known here, was dead. But she had decided against that. She needed her daughter to remain broken.

And once all of that was taken care of, Cora would find a way to deal with that Mackenzie for good.


End file.
